


Water's Crush

by Harmonyhhr



Series: 'Keeping' it Ghostly [4]
Category: Ghost (Swedish Band)
Genre: chapter 3 gets kind of gross, the title is pretty self explanatory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-16
Updated: 2016-12-16
Packaged: 2018-09-08 11:06:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,554
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8842297
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Harmonyhhr/pseuds/Harmonyhhr
Summary: Water falls for Mist without considering the consequences. 
- This was the only description I could think of that didn't make it sound like a bad Jason Derulo song. Forgive me.





	1. We got ourselves a situation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is meant to be a very tongue in cheek story, and I switched up the POV so we don't all start hating Ellie. I hope ya'll aren't getting sick of these blurbs yet - I have two more coming before the next Big Story comes along. Actually, I have enough material for two large stories if I plan them correctly. Eeeek.

The buzzing of the phone broke through his daydreaming. Water unlocked the screen to find a text from Ellie waiting for him.

_Did you decide what you’re going to buy her?_

He tapped out a fast reply.

_no ur supposed to help me_

He pressed send and adjusted his head on the pillow. Hiding behind the curtain of his bunk was a signal to the others that he wanted time to recharge. He could have stayed behind in the hotel but they shared rooms when they had a day off and he didn’t want Earth coming back early and bothering him. Occasionally he needed his space from everyone, especially Alpha. Omega had always been so good at controlling him but now that he was taking a break there was no one to soften the Fire Ghoul’s boisterous nature.

Not, he thought, that he didn’t love him like a brother. Brothers were supposed to get on your nerves, and he had four with very distinct and, ah, interesting, personalities. At one point he’d considered the man Papa inhabited a brother, but he was gone and Water didn’t like to think about it. He also supposed he had a sister too…though that wasn’t how he liked to think of her.

His stomach clenched as he imagined Mist the night they met. Even from a distance he could see how beautiful she was, and her raw wild power reached across the empty space to punch him in the heart. He ignored it then, thinking it some trick of Belial’s, but now he saw she had been on their side that night and it thrilled him to know he wasn’t falling in love with a monster.

_Love._

It felt silly to say he loved someone he’d only known for a few months but this was real. It wasn’t like the time he thought he’d fallen for that waitress in Germany…or the bartender in California…the record store clerk, the nurse, a vet tech, a venue owner, a couple of fans or his old lovers. His brothers were never supportive of his potential relationships and often pestered him endlessly with their good-humored taunts. He was well aware the ridicule he would face from falling in love with Mist would be far worse than the others, but for her? He would suffer through anything.

His phone lit up again, this time announcing an incoming call.

“Hi, Ellie.” He thought he had a crush on her too, until Omega found them alone together in the Keepers locker room and all but peed on her to mark his territory.

Ellie coughed slightly before responding, “Hi, Water. You finally going to tell me about this mysterious lady of yours?”

She had been grilling him on and off since he accidentally let it slip he was interested in someone again. She was generally more supportive than his other friends but there was no way even she would be fine with his involvement with Mist.

“You don’t need to know anything about her to help me pick out a gift.” He was going to have to play this very carefully.

Ellie coughed again. “Well, what’s the present for? Birthday? Holiday?” She sounded tired.

Water hesitated for a second, but figured there was no harm in answering her question. “I’m ready to tell her how I feel. I need something special to show her I’m serious.”

Silence met him from the other end of the line. “You – you haven’t told her yet?” He could almost hear her thinking. “It’s been a while since you told me about her, Water. This is completely unlike you. Usually you forget about them as soon as you move to the next city.”

“Hey!” He wasn’t _that_ bad. Each person who touched his heart remained there, and he told Ellie as much. Her response was a snort of derision. “Oh please. I think me and the guys remember your escapades better than you do.” Water tried to defend himself again but she was on a roll. “And how exactly are you going to give this girl a gift? I’m almost certain Air won’t play taxi for you, especially over a woman I know for a fact you haven’t told him about.”

Uh oh. Water was going to have to stop her or she was going to figure it all out. “Ellie, you don’t sound so good. Are you sick?”

“I’m not sleeping very well, and don’t you try to distract me.” Her excitement made her cough more, but she kept going. “If Air won’t take you then that means she’s easily accessible…someone who’s easily accessible and you don’t want your friends to know…” She gasped out a ‘no’, a harsh and overly exaggerated sound.

He wracked his brain frantically for any excuse but none came to him. “It’s not what you think. I-” but it was no use. He had to pull the phone away from his ear so her shrieking didn't do permanent damage. “WATER “If YOU HAD A MIDDLE NAME I WOULD USE IT RIGHT NOW” GHOUL! Tell me this instant I am wrong. Tell me the woman you want to be with is NOT Mist.” 

But he couldn’t deny it. It would be wrong of him to hide something he felt so strongly. Besides, he was going to tell Mist tonight anyways so everyone would know soon enough. His bandmates would just have to get used to the idea of them as a couple.

His lack of response must have answered her question. “Oh Water, you poor fool.” She said weakly.

That was the kind of reaction he’d been expecting and it made him more angry than he realized. “What’s so wrong with falling in love with her? Mist isn’t a bad person! She was going to help us against her own father!” Ellie tried to interrupt but now it was his turn to steamroll the conversation. “No! You can’t come up with any decent reasons why we shouldn’t be together. Or is it because she’s so much older than me? She can’t possibly love someone like me because I’m not worldly enough, or sophisticated enough for her?”

“YES,” Ellie had to shout to make herself heard.

Water was taken aback; usually friends were supposed to say “of course not” to those kinds of questions.

His “friend” was still talking. “Those are the exact reasons why it could never work! You said she isn’t a bad person – we don’t even know if she _is_ a person! And she isn’t just twenty or thirty years older than you. Dude, she probably knew Moses on a personal level.”

Okay, so she was making some decent points, but it didn’t matter to him. Love was love…or at least he believed it was.

Ellie wasn’t finished, though. “Plus, I’ve seen you fall in love with a dozen different people in the few months you have been back after recovering. Remember how upset you were when the guy you met after the show in New York wouldn’t drop everything and come on the rest of the tour with you?”

Water scoffed, “I chose to leave him behind. He had no sense of adventure.”

“He was eighteen and just started college.” It felt like she had a list of his flaws right in front of her. “How will this debacle be any different than the others?”

“Because I love her.” There. She couldn’t argue with that.

Oh, but she could. “And what about Air? You can’t tell me you haven’t realized he and Mist had some kind of relationship in the past.”

Air was a hitch in his master plan. He was lucky he was able to discover he loved Mist at all, what with his oldest bandmate skulking around. He was always following her, always hovering and watching her closely. He made it almost impossible for Water to steal a few moments alone with her.

“Air doesn’t have feelings for Mist. C’mon El, now you’re reaching. He’s probably paranoid because they worked for the same demons.” Water dropped his voice to a near whisper. “I know she did some bad stuff in the past but I’m positive it’s all behind her.”

Ellie wanted to reach through the phone and shake him into oblivion. “Gods almighty, I knew you were a hopeless romantic but I didn’t figure you were a stupid, hopeless romantic.” She sighed and muttered something under her breath that sounded a lot like “musicians”.

He decided to cut her off before she could keep berating him and told her, “I didn’t ask for permission. I’m going to tell her tonight exactly how I feel and then you’ll all have to apologize for being wrong.” He ended the call and threw the phone to the bottom of the bunk.

He managed to ignore it for a few minutes, but soon snatched it up and opened his messages.

_She’s old. Buy her something old_

_Er, antique_

He laughed and gave her the name of a tea he used to help with colds and insomnia.


	2. The Heat is On

Water spent the rest of his day searching for an antique shop within walking distance of the bus. It wasn’t easy but he finally found a place that sold the most perfect antique jewelry he could have asked for. The necklace he’d chosen was safely ensconced in his jacket pocket while he and the guys grabbed a drink from a nearby bar. Fans had yet to swarm the area so they were able to enjoy their night in anonymity, but the one person he wished to see wasn’t anywhere to be found.

“Where’s Mist?” He tried to sound casual as he sipped his drink.

Air (of course) answered, “She chose to remain in her room.” He offered no more information.

He forced himself to remain calm and started a game of pool with Alpha and Earth. Once they began their usual squabbles over who was the better player, he excused himself under the guise of going out for a smoke. He waited near the door for a few minutes in case anyone decided to join him, and then hurried back to the hotel once the coast was clear.

The rooms they booked were on the same floor and all in a neat little row. Papa never took a room, but why would he when he could still travel anywhere he wanted to go? Water always liked to port back to his house in what Ellie called “Ghoulville” (unless he wanted to…entertain), but now they were just a regular band and had to deal with the pitfalls of being around each so much. It was kind of nice.

He reached the room Mist had by herself and knocked firmly, calling out her name as he did so. He only had to wait a few heartbeats before she opened the door and even in a tank top and sweats, was still the most gorgeous creature he’d ever laid eyes on.

“Hey. What’s up?” She smiled up at him, questions dancing in her stunning eyes. He noticed she didn’t move away from the door to let him in, but he couldn’t blame her. This would be maybe the second or third time he’d gotten her alone without Tall, Dark and Moody® staring a hole through his back.

His confidence wavered a bit as he remembered what Ellie said about Air and Mist, but he pushed those damaging thoughts away before they could incapacitate him. “I, ah, came to talk to you. About something important.”

He glanced past her to the room beyond. “Can I come in?”

Mist nodded and opened the door wider, walking away to allow him to close it after he stepped inside. She sat in one of the chairs next to the small table in the room, leaving him to awkwardly sit across from her in the other chair. It wasn’t as romantic as he pictured it would be but he guessed it didn’t really matter.

She didn’t say anything, just stared at him expectantly and he cleared his throat, wondering where to start. “I wanted to see you, privately, to tell you something. It’s something I’ve been questioning for a while now, and now seems like a good time to talk about it. With you.”

Since becoming the Aether ghoul his confidence had grown exponentially but sitting there, in front of her, left him feeling like a tongue-tied teenager.

She still didn’t speak and it was beginning to unnerve him. “Uh, so I should probably come right out and say it. Ever since you joined the band…well, actually since the night we met, I’ve had these…feelings for you. And I know we haven’t spent a lot of time together but I really believe…that I love you.”

Water realized he’d avoided her eyes through his speech and had confessed his deep, dark secret to the wall behind her head. He finally worked up the nerve to look at her as the silence stretched between them and found her eyes wide with surprise.

Then she burst out laughing.

He wanted to sink right through the chair and down five floors to escape.

Mist restrained her merriment enough to wheeze out, “Oh Water! What a funny joke. It means so much to me that you guys would include me in a prank.” She giggled some more, until she caught sight of his reddening face.

“It is a joke, isn’t it?” She looked uncertain now.

He gave a half-hearted chuckle. “O-of it is! You caught me.” Shooting up from the chair, he wanted to make it to the door before she could keep talking but her voice stopped him as he stood up.

“Oh no. I’m so sorry! I thought you were trying to make me feel like a part of the band. I would have never laughed if I thought for a second…” Her face was as about as mortified as his. “Please. Sit back down.”

More than anything Water wanted to run from the room but he’d opened this can of worms and couldn’t turn back now. He pulled the necklace box from his pocket and shoved it toward her across the table. “I got this for you. To show you how serious I am.”

Mist reached out her hands to touch it but didn’t open the lid. She fiddled with the fastening and then scooted it back to him as he sat down once more. “I can’t accept such things. I think you’re a wonderful person, Water, but we – why we haven’t had more than a conversation or two since meeting. How can you be so sure you love me?”

Gods, now she was sounding like Ellie. Maybe the two should be friends; they could call him stupid together.

If he could just convince her of his devotion, he might still have a shot. “I’ve never felt this way about anyone! You’re a very talented bass player, and you must be strong since you went against your father like that. And I’m sure you’re smart and funny, not mention beautiful.” He trailed off, unsure of what to say next.

She, however, did not look amused or touched by his declaration. “Basically I play guitar and I’m hot and you’ll find the rest of my personality out later. Does that sound about right?” He gaped at her. She made him sound like an awful person!

Mist rose from the chair and indicated he should do the same. “Water, I’m going to give you a few words of advice. You could have wrecked the whole band by coming in here to tell me these things. I understand your heart was in the right place but if I were a different woman I might feel uncomfortable from such attentions.” She walked over to the door and opened it. “Then you’d be stuck with an offstage bass player for the rest of the tour and a very pissed off Papa Emeritus.”

Water stuck the necklace back in his pocket and shuffled out the door. He turned back to apologize before she shut it in his face and found her smiling at him. “Mist, I-“

She shook her head. “No need to apologize. I imagine my sons would have been a lot like you. The oldest would have been about your age – handsome, sweet, stubborn and absolutely hopeless.” He could see her eyes shining with unshed tears.

“Goodnight, Water.”

* * *

 

After spending the night on the bus so Earth couldn’t pepper him with questions, Water decided to make his way back to the shop where he bought the necklace. He surely couldn’t look at it without thinking of Mist and wanted to return it at once.

As he pouted his way down the street, he completely forgot how early fans began lining up for their shows, at least until he heard a female someone shouting his name excitedly from behind him. Crap. He loved the fans but now was not a morning where he wanted to field their advances and play nice.

Quickening his pace, he surreptitiously glanced back to find quite a large pack of attractive ladies pointing at him. One must have caught him looking and squealed, leading the group to start after him at an alarming rate of speed.

He gave up pretending he didn’t see them and broke in to a run. Dodging down unfamiliar streets, he attempted to flee but they were rather determined and somehow kept on his trail. He was beginning to tire and the thrill of the chase was wearing off. Eventually he stumbled across a row of stores just opening for the day and ducked in to the first without bothering to check it out.

Rustling came from the back of the store but his focus was on the window overlooking the street, searching for any sign of his dedicated fans.

“Um, excuse me? Sir? Can I help you find something?” A softly accented voice had his head swiveling around to stare at…well there was no other way to put it: she was the most gorgeous creature he’d ever laid his eyes on. Short and slim with red Shirley Temple curls and full tattoo sleeves covering both arms, she was his dream girl.

Overzealous fans forgotten, he turned on the charm. “You’ll have to excuse me. I sought sanctuary in your shop from my admirers.” He didn’t notice her rolling eyes and kept going. “I’m playing a show, right down the street actually, tonight and-”

She interrupted him, “Wait, you’re with Ghost?”

Excellent. “Why yes, I am. You’ve heard of us?” 

She waved a dismissive hand. “Yeah, your latest album was shit.”

Hips swinging, she went about straightening up the paintings littering her shop. It was only then he found he had run in to an art gallery. Most of the imagery was dark: skulls, demons, grotesque monsters, distorted bodies, etc.

To his delight he spied a painting of Papa Emeritus II hanging on the wall and pointed it out. “You must have thought we were good enough once upon a time.”

She too looked up at the painting and grudgingly smiled. “Well, I guess so. But don’t expect me to start creating anything based on _Popestar_.”

Studying the art more closely, he saw many paintings shared a similar style. “These were all done by you?” Judging by the amount in the store, she must never sleep.

“Mmmmhmmm.”

He could tell he was losing her interest and blurted out, “Would you like to have dinner with me?”

Her blank stare gave him no encouragement, so he slowed himself down. “Or, a drink after the show? You could tell me how terrible Ghost is in greater detail.”

Her lips twitched.

“And perhaps your name?”

She squinted her eyes at him as if expecting a trick, and then turned her back on him to walk behind the cash register. Water turned away to head outside, defeat dampening his spirits for a second time in twenty four hours but stopped when she said, “It’s Nikolina."

She was grinning. "And I think you’ll have to work harder than that to get me to go out with you. Like buying a painting? That one specifically?” Nikolina jerked her chin toward the Papa painting.

He returned her grin and tugged out his wallet, the necklace box bumping his hand. He might just find an owner for it yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One more chapter left. It's not Mist or Water related but furthers the plot. It's all about the plot!


	3. So it begins

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This gets a wee bit gruesome, far more than the other stuff I've written.

_“Ellie! Ellie, come here. I have a surprise for you.” Omega’s voice drew Ellie's attention, as it always did._

_She would have run right to him but for some reason he’d left her in the dark. “Omega, where are we?” She called out._

_His answering laughter floated across her skin. “We’re in the house, silly. Now come find me. You need to see!”_

_He was being annoyingly cryptic._

_Ellie flung her hands out in front of her and slowly shuffled her feet along the carpeted floor, hoping to run in to a wall so she could guide herself to him. The carpet told her she was upstairs in the main house but she couldn’t understand why all the windows were blacked out – did Omega really cover them all? He must have a very special surprise planned._

_“You have to hurry! I’m leaving soon. Don’t you want to say goodbye?” His words sent a mix of fear and excitement bouncing around her stomach and she dropped to her hands and knees, thinking crawling would be faster than the old lady shuffle._

_It was fortunate she changed her position, because mere moments after she fell to the floor it gave way beneath her, transforming in to stairs.The main staircase! Less than gracefully she tumbled down them and took only a second to rest when she reached the bottom. Her heart was pounding so hard she was sure it would burst from her chest, but she kept moving – she couldn’t disappoint Omega!_

_Sure enough, he yelled to her again. “Get up! Don’t you know where you’re going by now?” He sounded angry. “How did I ever let myself care about someone so stupid?”_

_Ouch. Ellie clambered up from the floor, horrified by the way she was letting him down. Throwing her previous caution out the window, she practically sprinted to the studio door. Where else could he be but there? He rarely left it anymore. Joy erased the fear in her heart; he was finally letting her back in._

_Her fingers brushed the knob of the door and she tugged frantically at it to no avail. “Omega, the door is stuck!” she cried out, hoping he could hear her. “Please, let me in! I'm here!"_

_She went to yank on the knob again but the sturdy door flew open of its own accord, slamming in to her face so forcefully she felt her nose give way under the impact. Warm salty blood spilled down over her lips but the pain was secondary to her need to get to Omega._

_She would have dropped to her knees once more but something shoved in to her back as she began to kneel. Down she went, head catching on the lip of the stair, forcing her weight entirely on the fragile bones of her neck, snapping them like glass. She picked up speed as her now limp body rolled on, each painful crash against the wood beneath her breaking more bones, tearing ligaments, shredding muscle._

_It was a small comfort to finally slam into the floor below, though she was certain the last crack of her head against the surface split her skull wide open. At least she made it._

_Footsteps echoed across the room, though in the darkness she couldn’t see who it was. She tried to say Omega’s name but only bloody spittle shot in to the air around her._

_“Ah, good. You’re here, though you look a little worse for wear. Ugh, I think part of your brain is showing. How…unseemly.” Relief coursed through her veins at the sound of him so close. She tried crawling to his side but her limbs were too broken._

_Omega laughed warmly, standing directly next to her now. “Sweet girl, don’t tax yourself. Your surprise surrounds you – can’t you see them?"_

_More nonsensical noises scratched their way from her throat as she tried to tell him to turn on the lights._

_“Oops. I’m sorry, Ellie. That nasty fall you took seems to have taken your sight as well. Let me help.” A familiar snapping of his fingers had her vision returning in a rush, the bright lights revealing an increasingly large pool of congealing blood soaking through her clothes and skin. "Yes, you've made quite a mess. I hope you clean it up after I'm gone."_

_Omega's shoes came in to view, stopping just outside of the blood spill. "I suppose since your neck is damaged you won't be able to look around properly. God, what a burden you must be." Strong hands clamped on either side of her head and wrenched it from the blood with a soft, sucking *pop*. "Look, my dear. Don't you like them?"_

_Ellie's eyes took time to focus properly on the wall in front of her but when they did, she wished she were still blind. The Ghouls - Earth, Water, Air, Alpha, even Mist, all hung like artwork on the bright white surface. A monstrously grinning gash ran horizontally across their midsections, allowing vital organs to spill out to the floor in front of them._

_"You know, I never understood the allure of hunting until this very moment." Omega dragged her head around to another angle. "And we can't forget this guy over here. I set him to the side, since he's so special to you."_

_She would have screamed if she'd been capable. It was Omega himself who hung there, midsection slashed just as the others, but he'd also been cut in to pieces. Each of his limbs were pinned to the wall where they would gone had he still been whole._

_Grating laughter surrounded her as the imposter plopped her head back down on the ground. "I think that was a good surprise, don't you?" Another finger snap opened a portal in her line of sight. "Now I have other more important events to attend but I do hope you enjoyed playing, Ellie. I'll see you soon enough."_

Ellie jerked her way through layers of sleep to lurch screeching back to reality. Her heart galloped so hard it was as though it were skipping beats and sweat drenched her nightclothes and bedsheets. Shivering violently, she reached out to pat the space next to her but found it empty. Omega hadn't come to bed again. 

Wrapping herself in the large comforter, she left her old bedroom of the main house and made her way down to the studio, constantly reminding herself her previous journey there was only a nightmare. She had chosen to stay here after she attempted (unsuccessfully) to coax Omega from his music.

The doorknob turned easily under touch and she saw the room downstairs was awash with light, though she didn't hear anything. She couldn't quite bring herself to descend but told herself it was enough to know he was still there.

Ellie shut the door quietly and continued to the library. There would be no sleep for her tonight.


End file.
